[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 58 (Friday, March 26, 1999)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 14807-14808]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-7705]



[[Page 14805]]

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Part III





The President





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Proclamation 7175--Greek Independence Day: A National Day of 
Celebration of Greek and American Democracy, 1999
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  Federal Register / Vol. 64, No. 58 / Friday, March 26, 1999 / 
Presidential Documents  

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 Title 3--
 The President

[[Page 14807]]

                Proclamation 7175 of March 24, 1999

                
Greek Independence Day: A National Day of 
                Celebration of Greek and American Democracy, 1999

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                America has deep roots in Greece, and today we 
                celebrate the friendship, values, and aspirations our 
                two countries have shared for more than 2 centuries. 
                Greek thought and the passion for truth and justice 
                deeply influenced many of our Nation's earliest and 
                greatest leaders. The documents our founders wrote to 
                establish our democracy and the political and legal 
                institutions they created to preserve our independence 
                and protect our rights reveal that influence.

                Later, recognizing this profound debt to Greek thought 
                and culture and inspired by the struggle of modern 
                Greece in the War of Greek Independence, many Americans 
                left home to join in that distant fight for freedom 
                between 1821 and 1832. In this century, the 
                relationship between the Greek and American peoples 
                deepened as we fought together in two world wars. The 
                U.S. desire to help preserve freedom in Greece after 
                the devastation of World War II moved President Truman 
                to stand firm against isolationism and for postwar 
                engagement abroad. Our nations stood together in Korea 
                and in the Gulf War, and we continue to work shoulder-
                to-shoulder today in our efforts to find a lasting 
                solution in the Balkans and to promote democracy around 
                the world.

                The bonds of family have further reinforced our ties of 
                friendship and shared ideals. All across our Nation, 
                Americans of Greek descent have brought their energy, 
                grace, and determination to every field of endeavor, 
                and they have added immeasurably to the richness and 
                diversity of our national life. The sons and daughters 
                of Greece have flourished in America, and with their 
                help, America too has flourished.

                Today, as we celebrate the 178th anniversary of the 
                onset of modern Greece's struggle for independence, let 
                us celebrate as well the great partnership between our 
                nations and the precious heritage of freedom and 
                democracy we share.

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, WILLIAM J. CLINTON, President of the 
                United States of America, by virtue of the authority 
                vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United 
                States, do hereby proclaim March 25, 1999, as Greek 
                Independence Day: A National Day of Celebration of 
                Greek and American Democracy. I call upon all Americans 
                to observe this day with appropriate ceremonies, 
                activities, and programs.

[[Page 14808]]

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                twenty-fourth day of March, in the year of our Lord 
                nineteen hundred and ninety-nine, and of the 
                Independence of the United States of America the two 
                hundred and twenty-third.

                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 99-7705
Filed 3-25-99; 10:33 am]
Billing code 3195-01-P